Public safety agencies train in Fairfield for active shooter situations

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Fairfield Police Sgt. Josh Kresha coordinates with several students from the Public Safety Academy as they take part in the department’s active shooter training Tuesday at Mt. Calvary Baptist Church.
Joel Rosenbaum — The Reporter

Personnel from the Fairfield Fire Department perform first aid on one of the stabbing victims during an emergency preparedness drill Tuesday at the Mt. Calvary Baptist Church.
Joel Rosenbaum — The Reporter

Officers with the Fairfield Police Department make their entry Tuesday into the sanctuary building at the Mount Calvary Baptist Church as they take part in an active shooter training exercise. Officers from both the Fairfield and Suisun police departments as well as Fairfield Fire Department firefighters were confronted with several scenarios during the training.
Joel Rosenbaum — The Reporter

Moans, screams and pleas early Tuesday combined with gunshots, orders and medical assessments as multiple public safety agencies stormed Mount Calvary Baptist Church in Fairfield for active shooter/killer training.

Scenario after scenario played out and integrated police, fire, ambulance crews and hospital staff for maximum reality.

Meanwhile, youth from the Public Safety Academy role-played victims, sporting moulaged wounds including gunshots and knife slashes. While some played the walking wounded, others had more serious injuries and still more were dead.

The six-day, four-hour sessions took six months to plan, Fairfield police Officer Cade Beckwith advised, and was reassessed regularly even during the trainings. Likely because of numerous call-outs for a major injury accident, incident with an explosive device and more.

Real life, of course, always takes precedence over training days.

This event, held every two years or so, is ever evolving.

With active shooter incidents becoming more commonplace, public safety officials need to know best practices in addressing such situations, Beckwith said. He added that it’s beneficial to work with other agencies.

“Our whole goal is to stop people from dying, to save lives,” he said.

The first scenario involved an armed man at a church who lets loose with gunfire.

Police in riot gear stealthily enter the church and go in search of the gunman, clearing the sanctuary and hallways, both littered with victims both injured and dead.

Cries of “We need help,” are heard. “People are dying.”

Within moments, the suspect is neutralized.

Three run throughs are done to ensure every officer has a chance to attempt the exercise. Following the incident, participants head outdoors for a debriefing.

Next scenario — a military veteran comes home from deployment to learn his wife is cheating on him. Armed with a knife, he heads to the church to confront his wayward wife and his teen daughter.

As officers enter the sanctuary, the “suspect” viciously stabs his daughter numerous times (with a fake knife), then slits his wife’s throat before barricading himself in a back room.

As negotiators talk with him, medics arrive and assess the situation.

They tag victims with red — immediate help needed, yellow — aid can wait, and white/black — dead. That done, the victims are carried out and placed into ambulances.

“It’s just really significant training for our guys,” said John Sturdee, deputy chief with the Fairfield Fire Department. “It’s a lot of lessons learned.”

It’s rare to have so many agencies train together, he continued, and learn together. The experience, he added, is invaluable.

For their part, the youth described the event as fun. Plus, they said, they got out of class.

Other agencies involved in the training included the Vacaville, Benicia and Petaluma police departments, and Solano County Sheriff’s Office.